Trump Considers New Tariffs On Semiconductors - Reports Raise Alarm Could Doom US Dominance

Politico reports Thursday on what could be another significant setback for US data centers and major damper on American AI aspirations.

The White House is mulling the possibility of introducing new tariffs on semiconductors and a broader range of technology products, including laptops, servers for data centers and gaming equipment - a move tech companies have long been warning against, and which may demonstrate once again that the only thing getting 'reshored' is massive inflation for end consumers.

The report notes that "Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick favors a structure that would tie foreign companies’ relief from the tariffs to investment in US chip manufacturing to juice more domestic production, said four of the people."

"The administration is also mulling a phase-in period for the new tariffs, the four people said," the report continues. "The people stressed that the framework could still be substantially revised in the coming weeks or months."

Jonathan McHale, digital policy chief at the Computer and Communications Industry Association, is quoted in the report as saying. "This data center buildout, in scale and dollars, has been compared to building the transcontinental railroad.”

"Anytime you add to the cost and decrease predictability you make it more difficult to invest, and you are putting that in jeopardy," he pointed out.

As a reminder under Biden Washington first laid the groundwork with a significant escalation of semiconductor trade barriers. Trump then upped the ante on the campaign trail, floating a shock 100% levies on imported chips while promising a full pass for anyone willing to build their manufacturing on American soil. Then in January the White House slapped a 25% tariff on high-end AI semiconductors.

US sanctions on advanced chipmaking equipment and high-end semiconductors have been aimed at slowing China's push into cutting-edge chip production.

But as CNBC also points out, Chinese tech firms have reportedly had little trouble bypassing "strict" export bans to get their hands on Nvidia hardware. 

"Industry watchers say access to advanced compute via overseas cloud providers is a key factor in Chinese AI models gaining capability," CNBC writes Thursday. "US legislation is being discussed to plug this loophole, but hurdles remain before it can have an impact," it adds.

🇨🇳🇹🇼 China appears to be testing another way of pressuring Taiwan—weaponising its dominance of critical supply chains.

Taiwanese manufacturers are reportedly experiencing delays obtaining strategically important germanium- and quartz-based materials from China, with shipments… pic.twitter.com/KY1y9pQQmX

— China Update (@tonychinaupdate) August 24, 2026

A fresh White House statement says, "Reshoring semiconductor manufacturing is a top priority for President Trump, whose policies have already secured hundreds of billions of dollars of investments in this key sector," according to admin spokesperson Kush Desai.

"The Trump administration remains focused on delivering more investments and economic relief for the American people while safeguarding our national security," the official adds.